Lib woman: It’s the fault of Republicans that I got pregnant because they didn’t give me the pill

Can I be totally real with you for a second? This open-letter to Tom Price (new cabinet pick from Donald Trump) broke my heart. It broke my heart for so many reasons.

This woman uses her personal experiences as fundamental proof that her opinion is more valid than anyone else’s opinion. It is well-written, eloquent and (in my opinion), so disturbingly off-base.

As a Republican woman, I am tired of being labeled “racist” for my moral and religious beliefs. When it comes to abortion, I have been called sexist, a sell-out and ignorant. But this is the first time I have been called racist for opposing abortion. And that is exactly what this woman does. Hold on though, because it gets worse.

It starts as a discussion about race. I read this article. I tried to understand her point of view. I really did. In other words, while reading this the first time, I just listened. I tried to just listen to her feelings and not object or oppose. Just listen.

But I genuinely cannot wrap my head around how lack of government funded abortion and birth control is targeting black women. She starts with this:

As a Black woman, I am distraught that your opposition to the Affordable Care Act will leave many of my sisters without basic health care.

She blames the government for not providing her with birth control when she was 19, working part-time, living at home and attending college. The financial burden was too much, she says, to afford the $30 a month for contraception.

by Sir John Hawkins

John Hawkins's book 101 Things All Young Adults Should Know is filled with lessons that newly minted adults need in order to get the most out of life. Gleaned from a lifetime of trial, error, and writing it down, Hawkins provides advice everyone can benefit from in short, digestible chapters.

When she became pregnant, it was not her fault. It was not her parent’s fault for not teaching her about sex and what happens if you don’t use contraception. It was not her boyfriend’s fault who refused to wear a condom. And it definitely was not her fault.

It was the government’s fault.

Like most teens, I turned to my friends to fill in the gaps, asking them the questions that I didn’t feel comfortable asking my parents, or looking for answers I didn’t get in class…And, like many teens, I didn’t know how to negotiate consent or condom use in my relationship, which later turned abusive. Eventually, I became pregnant.

Can we talk about that last bit for a second? She is here saying her parents never taught her and that she was in an abusive relationship. The problem with this situation is so much bigger than being able to afford “the pill.” But that is not what she is talking about here.

Can I just for a moment add something else? Two weeks after I turned 18, I moved out of my house. My parents paid for my luggage and a one way ticket 2000 miles away from them. I learned to provide for myself. I paid for tuition, rent, food and transportation. And I did not ever need the government to help, much less pay for my birth control.

I understand everyone’s experiences are different and I do not want to take away from people who find themselves needing government assistance. But people! The government is not responsible for making sure you can afford to have sex. That is not their job. If you can’t afford two weeks of the pill, as she explains, then do not have sex for two weeks. Or buy a condom.

She perfectly lays out the problem with our society in her open letter. And it has nothing to do with birth control.

You can read her whole letter here. But take my word, it will fire up all your emotions.